By Steve Neavling
Freed from prison by President Trump’s clemency, some of the Jan. 6 rioters are now demanding money.
In recent weeks, lawyers for the mob that stormed the Capitol have pressed the administration to pay restitution, claiming they were unfairly prosecuted, The New York Times reports. One of their attorneys, Mark McCloskey, said he met with Justice Department officials to pitch a special panel to award damages to rioters, which is similar to the compensation fund created for Sept. 11 victims.
“The only thing I can do as your lawyer is to turn your losses into dollar bills,” McCloskey told rioters during an online meeting.
He suggested the panel be overseen by Jeanine Pirro, who now runs the U.S. attorney’s office in Washington.
The push marks a striking escalation in efforts to recast the insurrectionists as victims. McCloskey and fellow lawyer Peter Ticktin, a longtime Trump ally, have been trying to sue the government since March, though McCloskey admitted last week they have run into “significant difficulties,” including legal deadlines that may block their claims.
Hopes for payouts rose in May when the Justice Department agreed to pay nearly $5 million to settle a wrongful-death lawsuit filed by the family of Ashli Babbitt, who was fatally shot during the attack. But last month, department lawyers opposed a separate lawsuit from Proud Boys members who alleged “political persecution.”
It remains unclear how seriously top Trump officials are considering the restitution plan.
